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Dixons Carphone has appointed a new chairman of its Carphone Warehouse arm, as it looks to shake up its mobile division. Stepping down in his role as deputy CEO and board director of the company, Andrew Harrison assumes the role of chairman of The Carphone Warehouse Limited with immediate effect.
Keen to get started in his new role, Harrison said that he is excited to tackle the ongoing changes in the mobile market.
Andrew Harrison said: "I am extremely proud of what we have achieved through the merger of Dixons Carphone over the last three years. With the ongoing changes in the mobile market, I now want to focus my attention more sharply on Carphone Warehouse, a business that has been close to my heart for over 20 years, as we enter the next stage of its development.”
The appointment comes after Dixons Carphone CEO Seb James announced that the company is having to rethink the mobile side of its business following a drop in sales during H1 of 2017. After announcing that mobile sales were down 3 per cent for the first half of the year in the UK, James admitted that that side of the business needed a shake up. James added that conversations with network providers were already underway to ‘unleather’ the retailer from existing contractual obligations.
“We know that the business needs some changes,” James said. “Some things have happened this year that have affected our numbers. It is not the end of the world but we need to adapt to the changing market.”
Speaking of Harrison’s appointment, James believes the right man is in position to help the mobile side of the business flourist. “I am delighted that Andrew has agreed to take on the role of Chairman of Carphone Warehouse. We are aware that this part of our business, while retaining a high degree of appeal and relevance to customers, operates in a market where customer behaviour is changing. As we reposition our model to enable Carphone Warehouse to flourish in this changing world, there is nobody better qualified or more able to lead this transition than Andrew.”
Andrew will step down as Deputy CEO and Board Director of the Company. Andrew will take on this role under a new contract with a minimum term of 12 months.
